Week 2: A Bowl Becomes a Burrito
or a delicious, veggie packed sweet potato quesadilla
So you’ve got your basic bowl mastered and you want to move onto other dishes. Or you haven’t quite landed on your preferred spices and seasonings or cooking times and you want to hide the imperfections in a slathering of cheese and a tortilla wrapper. Either way, this is a quick and simple way to transform your bowl into a new meal.
In addition to your basic bowl ingredients (rice or quinoa + beans + veggies), you need your favorite vegan cheese, tortilla wrappers, and a baked sweet potato. My favorite vegan cheese that melts well is made by Violife. I buy their vegan mozzarella for pizzas and wraps and their colby jack flavor for Mexican themed dishes. Miyoko’s now makes shredded vegan cheese too. I prefer Violife’s shredded cheese for this recipe, but you can use any brand you prefer.
My favorite sweet potatoes are white hannah potatoes. Orange and purple sweet potatoes are great options too. I typically make my grain (rice or quinoa) an hour or so before I start cooking or a day ahead and keep it in the fridge overnight. This recipe uses about 4 oz. of cooked sweet potato, which is about half a cup. I typically use about half of a sweet potato and save the other half for the next day (it will keep about 3 days). The skin is good for you so I typically mash it into whatever dish I make.
You can mash leftover sweet potatoes with a fork, microwave them for about a minute, sprinkle with cinnamon and top with vegan butter or Cocoatella (chocolate cacao butter, like a healthier version of Nutella), and a sprinkle of sea salt for a delicious dessert.
Ingredients for 2 quesadillas
basic bowl from week 1
2 tortilla wraps
handful shredded vegan cheese
1/2 cup cooked sweet potato
If you want to make burritos, it is best to have larger size tortilla wrappers. A smaller wrapper will do, but you won’t have much filling inside. If you are going the burrito route, turn your oven to 350° before you start making your bowl. Ovens need about 30 minutes to heat to this temperature before baking.
I typically use my favorite frying pan to make the bowl ingredients, assemble my quesadillas, then put the remaining bowl ingredients onto a plate. I quickly wash and dry my frying pan and put it back on the heat. I cook 2 quesadillas at a time, about 4 minutes on the first side and 3 on the second. When the quesadillas are done, I turn the heat to 1, slide the extra bowl mix back into the hot pan and give it 2-3 minutes to warm up before serving.
Instructions
Mash cooked sweet potato onto your tortillas as shown in the photo above. You can leave the skins on or take them off, as you prefer.
Sprinkle with shredded vegan cheese.
If making a quesadilla, place bowl mix on one side of the tortilla only and fold it in half. If making a burrito, place bowl mix in the middle, fold in the sides, fold in one end, wrap and tuck. Here’s a one minute video tutorial if you need to brush up your burrito making skills.
Place both quesadillas in your frying pan over medium-high heat and set a timer for 4 minutes. Flip and cook 3-4 minutes on the second side.
Or place burritos on parchment paper on a baking sheet and bake for 5-6 minutes in a 350° oven. If you are serving with a side of chips and guacamole, you can warm your chips in the oven for the last 2 minutes of the cooking time or put them in the oven with the heat off after you have cooked your burrito. (Warm chips taste more like restaurant chips and are yummy with guac or salsa).
This is one of my favorite meals that I have every week. I vary the veggies, cheese, and type of tortilla wrapper used to keep it interesting. One of these bad boys makes for a filling and nutritious meal. At lunchtime I typically serve it alongside some extra veggies from the bowl mix and top it with guacamole or vegan sour cream.
If you make this dish, I hope you enjoy it. <3